Looking at ordering an Aero leather jacket...assistance if you will

[Aloysius]

Definitely too small. Like I have said elsewhere, Thurston's claims of things like "42 but fits like 46" only work if you actively want a tight fit on a jacket designed for layering.

But again, like I just said in another thread, this should have been part of the one you made a few days ago. I don't want to tag in Peacoat again but people keep making new threads for what should simply be new posts on their existing threads. (Frankly, most of this stuff could go in the FAQ or fit check threads but I'm asking the bare minimum.)

 

[Eagledog]

Go up at least one size. You will never be able to put anything in the pockets and get the jacket zipped. And if you do you will tear out the zipper as soon as you aren't standing at attention. I would want to have the side fasteners at least half way closed with a comfortable relaxed fit and a medium layer underneath. Then you could let it out if you add a sweatshirt or hoodie. If you have been the same size for the past 10 or more years then you don't need to take into account the likelihood of outgrowing it. Otherwise maybe go up 2 sizes.

 

[Peacoat]

Definitely too small. Like I have said elsewhere, Thurston's claims of things like "42 but fits like 46" only work if you actively want a tight fit on a jacket designed for layering.

But again, like I just said in another thread, this should have been part of the one you made a few days ago. I don't want to tag in Peacoat again but people keep making new threads for what should simply be new posts on their existing threads. (Frankly, most of this stuff could go in the FAQ or fit check threads but I'm asking the bare minimum.)

Yes, instead of starting a new thread this should have been a continuation of the first thread. I have merged the two.

 

[Bennarion]

I have to go up a size. I feel a bit like a sausage currently when it is zipped...Could I wear it and see if it stretches? Sure, but I don't need a perfectly tailored fit.

The jacket won't stretch. You will always feel uncomfortable in it

 

[KingCotton]

Heard back from Carrie:

"The size 44 is going to give you 2 more inches in the total chest circumference, 2 more inches in total waist/bottom hem circumference and about .5" in the shoulders (this is .25" at the top of each shoulder). However, you may still want a little extra room in the waist/bottom hem of the size 44 to make it more comfortable. You could add .5" to each side to give yourself that bit of extra room. "

She says that HB deluxe tend to run large so a 44 would be like a 48...Which makes sense, because it's been a long time sense I could squeeze into a size 42 jacket.

 

[newtojackets]

Hello to all, I started lurking here about 13 months ago and finally signed up today because there are questions I have regarding ordering a Jacket from Aero that need some direct answers I think and not just to be found by reading various posts relating tangentally to what I am considering as I have done for the past year.

I am looking at ordering a single(and yes it will be an only as I don't order multiple types of the same coat) high quality leather jacket from Aero through TB. I have a 15 year old Polo Pea Coat that was my first "nice coat" that I retired last year and replaced with a Todd Snyder Pea coat that I absolutely love. I also have a Schaeffer Legend fleece lined legend denim jacket that I wear regularly. I have a carharrt for working in and have a 15 year old polo wind breaker my wife gave me that I wear occassionally, however the peacoat and the schaeffer are my 2 primary jackets. Looking at adding the leather jacket as a third wear regularly casual jacket.

I have owned one leather jacket 26 years ago when I thought I got a deal on a pigskin jacket at Dillards that was on sale. I promptly hated it and sold it to someone else. It was extremely thin and the leather was very light weight and billowy almost like a ski jacket. I detested the thing...stupid impulse buy. It has more or less put me off leather jackets ever since, until when shopping for my new pea coat last year I stumbled upon your fine forum.

I do not want a slim or tight fitting jacket. The idea of heavy and thick leather certainly appeals to me, but I don't ride motorcyles or any kind so have no need for the protection aspect of a leather jacket. I want something comfortable and durable, either a brown or a tobacco in color.

I am 6'4" and weigh 255lbs at 44 years of age I have a belly but not huge. Wear a 46L sport coat and both the pea coat and the Schaeffer are XL in size. I live in North Texas along the Red River, so semi arid low humidity, winters typically stay north of 5 degrees farenheit but lots of wind.


The measurements below come from my Schaeffer Denim jacket as I think it is the closest to what I am looking for fit wise:
Shoulder 24 (certain I measured that wrong or differently then TB does).

P to p 25

Back 29

Sleeve 26 (shoulder to cuff)

Waist 23

I have placed an order with Thurston Bros for a try jacket Half Belt deluxe in Brown CXL FQHH, it is a size 42 that fits like a 46.
Jacket measurements:
Back length--26.5 inches
Sleeve length--26.5 inches
Pit-to-pit--25 inches
Shoulder--20 inches
Waist/bottom hem--23 inches

So I'll have an idea how they fit on me. Like I said I don't need a slim or tight fit, Relaxed or classic would be closer to what I am going for. I spoke with Carrie at TB and with my measurement she thinks the Deluxe HB is closer to what I am looking for then say a Highwayman.

I am very interested in seeing how this jacket fits for an idea on size, I suspect I may want the eventual jacket to be longer then it comes normally but we will see.

Questions/ideas/advice/help:

-First of all in ya'lls opinion is the DHB the right jacket to be looking at here design wise? I have played around on both TB and Aero website and this looks to me like what I am wanting but always open to suggestions.

- Leather type--I have been off and on researching posts on here about the leathers available and have gone back and forth depending I think on who's opinion I have read most recently about what leather to go with.---I don't want light weight or thin, though I am certain anything from Aero is thick and heavy enough to meet that criteria. I really like Badalassi, but the squeak is a concern as is the rubber suit reflective appearance in one of the videos I have seen on here. Also open to Chrom HH or SH depending on how the try on jacket fits, love the history of Horween and all that. Have read up on Premiere, but it seems like it is much more light weight and thinner but I may be wrong on that. If Chrom do people still suggest going with tumbled or let it age naturally?

-Alterations--other than length, I am considering the corduroy strip for longevity. Also thinking I may delete the snap pockets on the front and just go with the handwarmers. My peacoat has those same flap pockets and I never use them but who knows. May delete the chest pocket as well but not sure on that.

. Definitely going with a tartan lining...just have to figure out which one. The light blue colored one on the jacket from TB looks nice, but so does black watch and others.

Color will obviously depend on the leather, but leaning to tobacco or chestnut in badalassi and leaning brown, cordovan, or natural in CXL.

Zipper leaning towards heavy duty #10 YKK as several on here seem happy with it.

No zipper cuffs.

I'm sure there are things I am still not thinking about, but this post is long enough.

Will be deeply appreciative of any and all suggestions or help/advice that y'all can provide!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. If you want comfort, do not go for CXL HH

 

[KingCotton]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. If you want comfort, do not go for CXL HH

Maybe it's being 6'5 and all, but even at the small tight fit, the cxl wasn't uncomfortable to wear yesterday afternoon sitting in my office....as long as I didn't zip it up. It felt good on.

 

[newtojackets]

Maybe it's being 6'5 and all, but even at the small tight fit, the cxl wasn't uncomfortable to wear yesterday afternoon sitting in my office....as long as I didn't zip it up. It felt good on.

Maybe it was the pattern of my CXL jackets- I've owned both the Cafe and Board racer, which might have also contributed. However, I am confident both those styles would have been more comfortable in a vicenza or badalassi

 

[RDS]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. If you want comfort, do not go for CXL HH

Have to say I can’t agree. It’s obviously all down to style, fit, personal preference and individual body shape.
I’ve had two stock Highwayman’s in CXL FQHH and both were more than comfortable and perfectly wearable.

 

[Eagledog]

It also depends on what you are doing. If your mostly sitting ( movie, restaurant,desk )mobility isn't very important. If you can easily change lightbulbs, raise the car hood, reach for something on the top shelf at the grocery store, put the star on top of a Christmas tree without any issues, that is the combination of features to go for. Best to have something you can go all day in without noticing you have it on. If you breathe a sigh of relief when you take it off (that goes for shoes too) then move on to something different.

 

[Aloysius]

She says that HB deluxe tend to run large so a 44 would be like a 48...Which makes sense, because it's been a long time sense I could squeeze into a size 42 jacket.

As I keep saying, Thurston's statements to this effect assume you want every jacket to fit snug like a cafe racer, when some jacket types are not designed for this at all.

Aero made a TFL thread to clarify this, explaining that ordering your actual chest size in their jackets will get you the fit that suits that type of jacket–an outerwear layering jacket will necessarily be bigger in the chest than a slim motorcycling thing.

 

[Canuck Panda]

I have to go up a size. I feel a bit like a sausage currently when it is zipped...Could I wear it and see if it stretches? Sure, but I don't need a perfectly tailored fit.

Going up one size is the better choice. I'd like to give people enough info they discover this themselves.

weigh 255lbs at 44 years of age I have a belly but not huge. Wear a 46L sport coat

For comparison I find size 40 in Aero's 50s pattern a match for myself, and I weigh less than you and wear American size 42 slim suits. So I think Aero's 50s fit in size 44 should fit you much better than the 42 you've got now. I've also tried to do the slim fit with size 38 but they never worked out.

The only thing left now is how long do you want your size 44 jacket build to be. The 42 looked short, you will need a bit more length. Keep in mind the 44 should be slightly longer than the 42. And there is no front drop on this jacket. So if you add the length long enough to cover the belt in the front, you'll end up with back length that covers the top of the jeans pocket. Which imo is the lesser of two evils as it will look better from the front and you'll get a bit more coverage and protection at the back. Talk to your seller about length.

 

[KingCotton]

Going up one size is the better choice. I'd like to give people enough info they discover this themselves.


For comparison I find size 40 in Aero's 50s pattern a match for myself, and I weigh less than you and wear American size 42 slim suits. So I think Aero's 50s fit in size 44 should fit you much better than the 42 you've got now. I've also tried to do the slim fit with size 38 but they never worked out.

The only thing left now is how long do you want your size 44 jacket build to be. The 42 looked short, you will need a bit more length. Keep in mind the 44 should be slightly longer than the 42. And there is no front drop on this jacket. So if you add the length long enough to cover the belt in the front, you'll end up with back length that covers the top of the jeans pocket. Which imo is the lesser of two evils as it will look better from the front and you'll get a bit more coverage and protection at the back. Talk to your seller about length.

Thanks. Still waiting to hear back from Thurston on the length.

Think I have settled in on Royal black stewart tartan and brown leather.... the question is FQHH or Steer hide. This jacket is FQHH and didn't bother me at all with stiffness or heavyness, Loved the look of it. My Denim jacket isn't as heavy as the aero...but my Pea Coat isn't too far off in the weight dept. I could definitely move more or less freely in the jacket other than where it was too small. But a lot of ya'll really praise the steer hide as being superior to the FQHH so still haunting the posts on here....at the moment I'd just go with FQHH in brown and be happy.

I'm just not getting the stiffness concern and I've worn it out in the cold yesterday and it wasn't an issue. Although I do understand that the steer hide shows better grain...

 

[KingCotton]

Looks like their going to send me a Highwayman in size 44 to see how that fits me. She says my height is going to need at least 2 inches added to the length, but the 44 would give me piece of mind on the fit.

Currently leaning this for the build:

a 44 with 2 inches added to the length and 1 inch added to the waistline.

Black Stewart medium weight lining-I could go heavy weight I guess...

nickel front zipper, nickel looped ball pull on chest pocket, single point "V" yoke with action back, leather-lined snap cuffs, Olive Drab stitching. All pockets are lined with moleskin. left and right side interior pockets with no closure.

 

[Canuck Panda]

Thanks. Still waiting to hear back from Thurston on the length.

Think I have settled in on Royal black stewart tartan and brown leather.... the question is FQHH or Steer hide. This jacket is FQHH and didn't bother me at all with stiffness or heavyness, Loved the look of it. My Denim jacket isn't as heavy as the aero...but my Pea Coat isn't too far off in the weight dept. I could definitely move more or less freely in the jacket other than where it was too small. But a lot of ya'll really praise the steer hide as being superior to the FQHH so still haunting the posts on here....at the moment I'd just go with FQHH in brown and be happy.

I'm just not getting the stiffness concern and I've worn it out in the cold yesterday and it wasn't an issue. Although I do understand that the steer hide shows better grain...

About the length it's best that Thurston help you, they would know it best because they have multiple sizes on hand, so they will know exactly how long the stock is, and how much to add.

About CXL FQHH vs Steerhide. FQHH is as stiff as everyone says it is. You've experienced it in your fit jacket. Steerhide will be more pliable but also a bit heavier in actual weight (pounds). FQHH graining developes a bit differently than SH, it's wild, the mottleness of the horsehide shows through as time pass. I also get these long vertical creases in most of my FQHH jacket sleeves that I don't get them with SH. For me personally, I perfer the FQHH grains but I wished they came with steerhide pliability.

 

[Canuck Panda]

The extra shipping cost up front is totally gonna be worth it to nail the fit. It's good they got a 44 Highwayman to send to you to try and nail down all the specs before building the custom.

 

[MrProper]

This jacket is FQHH and didn't bother me at all with stiffness or heavyness, Loved the look of it.

When I had my first FQHH, I thought that was ok too. It was only when I had a CXSH that I realised the difference. I would now only use FQHH if the desired colour is not available in other leathers (e.g. Natural). Otherwise CXSH or Vicenza.

 

[zebedee]

Vicenza is an ideal hide - I've had about 14 Aeros and really rate Vicenza.

 

[KingCotton]

Hwyman arrived today. This is actually a steerhide in black compared to the AQHH brown Half belt I tried last week.

Fit seems pretty good. I still think it needs an inch or 2 in length.

I zipped it up with no trouble though it was a little tight on my gut until I adjusted the straps out about all the way.

Sleeve length as you can see in last photo may be a hair long.

Other than that it all feels comfortable. I can reach up over my head fairly comfortably. A little sleeve pull from the weight, but that's to be expected.

 

[Eagledog]

1 inch wider in the waist so it doesn't ride up in the back. And add 1.5" front drop. Show a picture from the back unzipped.